Sony is set to close the PlayStation 3's digital store in July 2027, ending over 20 years of support and threatening to permanently remove access to titles that never received a physical release or have become prohibitively expensive as physical copies. Against this backdrop, the open-source emulator RPCS3 has reported significant progress in preserving the console's library, offering a route to continued access as Sony shows little interest in official PS3 backwards compatibility on newer hardware.

RPCS3's developers say the emulator now runs 75% of the PS3's game library as fully playable with no game-breaking issues, while a further 22% work but with some problems, and under 2% fail to progress past the main menu. Existing PS3 store purchases will remain downloadable for the "foreseeable future" even after the shutdown, but new purchases will no longer be possible once the store closes. The developers describe ongoing updates to the emulator as key to eventually preserving the console's entire catalogue.